


Cold Pizza and Croissants

by seasonofthegeek



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Friendship/Love, Marichat, Marichat May
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-27
Updated: 2017-05-01
Packaged: 2018-10-24 12:49:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,720
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10742040
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seasonofthegeek/pseuds/seasonofthegeek
Summary: Chat Noir and Marinette are friends but things seem to be moving in a bit of a different direction for them as of late.





	1. Chapter 1

“It’s just math,” Chat Noir said, trying to hide a grin. He leaned back in Marinette’s pink desk chair.

Marinette yanked at her pigtails in irritation. “That isn’t helpful. For me, it isn’t just math. For me, it’s hell.”

Chat Noir laughed. “Princess, I never knew you could be so dramatic.”

“You’re one to talk,” she muttered petulantly. She glared down at her tablet. “I just don’t get it.”

“Tell me which part you don’t get.”

“All of it!” Marinette threw her hands in the air. She was angry and embarrassed to feel tears prickling at her eyes. “It makes me feel so stupid.”

Chat Noir put an arm around her shoulder and pulled her chair close to his. “Hey, none of that. Look, I’ll walk you through it and you can stop me any time something doesn’t make sense, okay?”

Marinette nodded, her eyes on the tablet. 

After a long and grueling forty minutes, Marinette’s math homework was officially complete. 

“How do you feel?” Chat Noir asked. “Proud? Triumphant? Victorious?” 

Marinette rested her head on his shoulder. “Exhausted. I’m pretty sure math homework could be considered a form of torture in some countries.”

Chat Noir laughed lightly. 

“How do you know about all this anyway?” Marinette picked up Chat Noir’s right hand and began to run the pad of her pointer finger over his claws. He watched her, entranced with the movements.

“I had the same homework.”

Marinette’s finger stopped its looping trail. “The same exact homework?”

Chat Noir coughed. “Maybe not exactly. Similar enough though.”

“Hmmmm.” Marinette intertwined her fingers with his and flexed her hand. “Do you ever wish these retracted like a real cat’s?”

“Sometimes,” he admitted. “It would make certain things easier. On the other paw, it’s nice not to have to think about it. They’re just always there and ready.”

“Yeah, I guess not every battle is as easy as math homework for you, huh?”

“No, but I’ve always got Ladybug to help me.” He got a dreamy smile on his face.

“Yeah, everybody loves Ladybug, I guess.” Marinette picked her head up from his shoulder.

Chat Noir looked at her, surprised. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were jealous.”

Marinette cleared her throat. “That’s ridiculous.”

“My dear Marinette, Princess of my heart, are you jealous of Ladybug?”

“I don’t know how many times I can tell you to stop calling me ‘Princess’,” she muttered. “And what reason would I have to be jealous anyway?”

Chat Noir smiled at her. “I honestly don’t know. Any man would be lucky to call you his.”

Marinette bit her lip. “What about any cat?” 

Chat Noir’s face flushed and he made a choked sound. “Uh, yeah, that would be an especially lucky cat.”

Marinette grinned, laying her head back on his shoulder. “Good to know, kitty.”

They sat in silence until Chat Noir’s stomach gurgled. “Er, sorry about that. I didn’t eat dinner before I came out. I should probably be going.” He slid the chair back from the desk and stood.

“We could order a pizza,” Marinette offered. “I mean, if you wanted to stay a little longer.”

“I wouldn’t want to impose…”

Marinette rolled her eyes. “It’s not imposing if I offered, silly kitty.”

“I can pay you back next time. I don’t exactly have any money on me right now.” Chat Noir made a show of patting down his suit.

“Don’t worry about it. My parents left me pizza money anyway.” Marinette stood and opened the trapdoor. She made it down a couple of stairs before turning back. “You coming?”

“Usually you tell me to keep quiet so your parents won’t know I’m here. Now you want to parade me around the living room?”

Marinette laughed. “They’re not here. They left this morning for a weekend trip for my mom’s birthday.” She disappeared down the stairs. 

_____________________________

 

“Most ridiculous akuma?” Marinette asked. The pair was full of pizza and content, lying on a blanket on her balcony. Stars shone bright above them in the midnight sky.

“Hmmmm, I’m definitely going to have to go with Mr. Pigeon. The only thing scary about that guy was my allergic reaction to feathers. I was stuffy for days afterwards.”

“I didn’t know that.”

Chat Noir turned to look at her. “Why would you’ve?”

Marinette laughed nervously. “Right, duh.”

“Okay, my turn. Who do you think the sexiest akuma has been?”

“Eww, Chat, that just seems wrong.”

“Oh, come on, Princess. I won’t tell anyone.”

Marinette pondered it for a few minutes when realization hit her. “Oh my word. You want me to say Copycat, don’t you?”

Chat Noir smirked. “Only if you mean it.”

“Evillustrator then.”

“Ouch.”

“Yeah.”

“You really think Purple Paintbrush was sexier than Copy-Me?”

“He was actually pretty sweet until the whole betrayal thing,” Marinette admitted.

“Sweet is not the same as sexy.”

“Maybe not to you.”

Chat Noir took Marinette’s hand in his, bringing her knuckles to his lips for a quick kiss. “I guess I am happy he was around though. That’s the first time we met.”

“Oh, that’s right. You were all posing and flexing and ridiculous.”

“Well, you were all fawning and excited to work with me. Hey! Why don’t you act that way around me anymore?”

Marinette shrugged. “I guess the excitement wore off. You became old news.”

“Wow. I just came here to have a good time and I am feeling so attacked right now.”

Marinette giggled and snuggled in closer to his side. Chat Noir tightened his arm around her. “What about the scariest akuma?” she asked.

“There have been a lot of those,” he answered quietly. “All scary for different reasons.”

“Like what?” 

Chat Noir sighed. “Let’s see, there was the dinosaur that literally ate Ladybug. There was about a full minute there where my heart stopped. Hmmm, Rogercop knocked her off a flying car and I was sure she fell to her death. Timebreaker tried to kill her. Dark Cupid tried to turn her. Volpina came the closest to getting her Miraculous…all scary.”

“You saved Ladybug every one of those times.”

“Not every one,” Chat Noir grimaced. “I tried though.”

“You’re my favorite hero, Chat Noir,” Marinette claimed, nuzzling her cheek against the cool material of his suit.

_________________________________

 

“Holy cats, it’s one in the morning. I have to get out of here.” Chat Noir stood and stretched. 

“You promised if I ordered the large that you would eat all the pizza. Look how much is left! You can’t leave me alone with all this pizza,” Marinette complained. 

“Do you want me to take it with me?”

“No, it’s my pizza,” she whined. “I’ll just put it in the fridge. Cold pizza is delicious anyway.”

“Why would you eat pizza cold?”

“Are you seriously telling me you’ve never had cold pizza?” Marinette asked incredulously.

Chat Noir shrugged helplessly.

“Oh, my dear kitty, you can’t go anywhere then. I demand you stay until the pizza is perfect temperature to eat.”

“Marinette, it’s pretty late…”

“Oh, right, of course. You need to get home. Sorry,” she waved a hand at him. “I was having fun and I’m home alone tonight and I just wasn’t thinking.”

“Do you…I mean, are you scared to be here alone?”

“Of course not!” Marinette answered quickly.

“Okay.”

“Maybe it is a little eerie but I’m definitely not scared.”

“Uh-huh.” Chat Noir sat back down on the chaise.

“What are you doing?”

“Not letting you stay home alone and scared,” he answered simply.

“You won’t get in trouble for not being home?”

“I doubt anyone will notice,” he mumbled. “As long as I get back before six, I should be fine.”

“Thanks, kitty,” Marinette said gratefully.

________________________________________

 

“Marinette?”

“Hmmm?”

“Do you ever wonder who I am?” Chat Noir asked softly.

Marinette shifted in the bed so she was facing him. His green eyes glowed faintly in the dark. “Yes.”

“Do…do you want me to tell you?”

“Do you want to tell me?” she whispered.

“I don’t know. I’m nervous.”

“Maybe you shouldn’t tell me then.”

“Things might be easier if you knew.”

“What kind of things?”

“Talking things.”

Marinette laughed quietly, her voice heavy with impending sleep. “That doesn’t make much sense, kitty.”

“I guess not,” he sighed. 

They laid together in complete silence for a few minutes. 

“My name…my name is Adrien,” Chat Noir whispered.

A soft snore escaped Marinette as she curled against Chat Noir’s chest.

___________________________

 

“I have to go, Princess.” Chat Noir kissed Marinette’s forehead.

“’S too early, kitty.”

He laughed. “I know, but I have to go now. It won’t do for anyone to find out I never came home last night.”

Marinette sat up slowly, rubbing her eyes. “We have to eat pizza.”

Chat Noir glanced at the time. “Okay, I have time for one slice of this allegedly wonderful cold pizza.”

They climbed down from her bed and Marinette disappeared down the stairs.

__________________________

 

“Here’s two more slices of pizza and a croissant because I know how you feel about croissants.” Marinette handed Chat Noir a bulging brown bag. Her hair had mostly fallen out of her pigtails and her skin looked soft in the rising morning light.

“You’re too good to me, Mari.”

“Don’t you forget it, kitty.”

“Go back to bed.” Chat Noir leaned in and kissed her forehead. “Maybe I can swing by again later this weekend.”

“I would really like that.” Marinette yawned and shuffled back down through her skylight.

Chat Noir watched her disappear before opening the brown bag and pulling out a slice of cold pizza. He may have just found a new favorite food.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So this was going to be a one-shot but I've got too much Marichat in my head so here's some more. :)

“Chat!” Marinette greeted him happily as he slid in through the skylight.

“Hey there, cutie,” he winked. “Was it okay just to come in? I guess I should have asked that before…”

“Absolutely fine. I may have left it open just in case.”

Chat Noir felt his cheeks warm and was suddenly grateful for the low mask. “How has your day been?”

“Pretty nice actually. Alya and I went to a salon and had our nails done.” Marinette wiggled pretty pink fingernails. “And then we met up with some friends for lunch in the park.”

“Anyone I know?”

“Uh, let’s see. You know Alya, of course, and Nino…you remember Nino?”

Chat Noir nodded with a smile.

“Right, uh, Rose, Juleka, Kim, and Nathaniel.” She ticked off on her fingers.

“No Model Boy?”

Marinette blushed. “He had a photo shoot today, according to Nino.”

“Shame. What about Purple Paintbrush, was he as sweet as your remember?”

“Stop that,” Marinette slapped his arm lightly. “Nathaniel is really sweet; don’t make fun.”

Chat Noir held both hands up. “I’m not making fun, honest. You’re the one who chose him as the sexiest akuma.”

“Something I’ll regret saying to you for a long time, I’m sure.”

“Possibly,” he grinned. “But seriously, is there anything going on there?”

“What is with the sudden interest, kitty?” Marinette cocked an eyebrow.

“I can’t wonder about my dearest Princess’s love life?”

“Not if you aren’t a part of it.”

“Is that an invitation?”

Marinette’s eyes widened. “I..um…”

Chat Noir looked around, taking mercy on her. “You wouldn’t happen to have any more of that pizza would you?”

______________________________

 

“Tell me more about Model Boy,” Chat Noir demanded, tossing down his gaming controller. He had just lost the third game in a row and wasn’t sure how much more his ego could take.

“His name is Adrien and I think you’re just trying to get out of losing a fourth game,” Marinette challenged.

“Lies, but I would like a break. It’s not so easy playing with claws, you know.”

“Excuses, excuses.”

“Between Model Boy and Purple Paintbrush, who wins?” Chat Noir asked, studying his claws nonchalantly.

“You’re being really weird tonight.”

“No more than usual. We always talk like this.”

“Yeah, but not usually about…” Marinette’s voice trailed off.

“Ah, so it is Model Boy. Interesting.”

Marinette huffed. “Will you please stop calling him that?”

“And what would you have me call him, Princess? He’s a model. He’s a boy.”

“But that’s not all he is.”

“Are you sure?”

Marinette frowned. “He’s my friend.”

Chat Noir’s face lit up. “So model, boy, and friend…he’s your model boyfriend?”

Marinette threw a pillow at him.

_______________________

 

“Tell me a story.” Marinette snuggled against Chat Noir’s chest on the lounger. They were out on the balcony for the second night in a row. 

“Can I ask you a question first?”

“Mmmhmm,” she hummed.

“Why are you so comfortable with me?”

Marinette leaned up on her elbow to look down at him. “Should I not be?”

Chat Noir pulled her back down to his chest. “No, I’m not saying that. I guess I just wonder why. I mean, you don’t even know who I am.”

“Yes I do. You’re Chat.”

“You know what I mean,” he said dryly.

“And you obviously don’t know what I mean,” Marinette replied. “Just because I don’t know your real name or what you look like as a civilian doesn’t mean I don’t know you. Would you say you don’t know Ladybug just because you aren’t sure who she is outside the mask?”

“No,” he answered slowly.

“Well then.”

“What if…what if there was someone you weren’t comfortable around?”

“What about it?”

“How would you act?”

Marinette pushed herself back up to look at him again. “I feel like you’re dancing around something. Just come out with it.”

“I’ve been thinking about Model Boy again.”

“Chat,” Marinette warned.

“Hear me out. I’ve seen you interact with him. You seem…I don’t know, uncomfortable.”

Marinette moaned and buried her face against Chat Noir’s chest.

“So he does make you uncomfortable?”

“Why do you want to talk about Adrien so much tonight?” she mumbled into his chest.

“I’m just curious, I guess. You can’t really blame me. I’m mostly cat after all.”

Marinette raised her head and huffed. “Fine. If I tell you about Adrien, can we not talk about him for the rest of the night?”

Chat Noir nodded. 

“Okay…um, well, I have a crush on him obviously—“

“Obviously?!”

“What?”

“Why do you think your crush is obvious?”

Marinette’s cheeks reddened. “W-well, because people always tell me it is.”

“What people?”

“Alya, my parents, Nino, at least, like, three other classmates I can think of right now. And I mean, I can hardly form normal sentences around the guy. Like, it is super pathetic sometimes. One time he told me he liked my hair and I squeaked at him. There were no words, just the shrill sound of my soul leaving my body.”

Chat Noir chuckled. “How did he react to that?”

“How he always reacts,” Marinette sighed. “A kind smile, I think he patted my shoulder. He must think I’m a lunatic.”

“I doubt that.”

“What about you, Chat Noir? Surely Ladybug isn’t the only girl in your life.”

“No, but she’s the most important one.” Chat Noir coughed. “Second most important, I meant,” he amended with a wink.

Marinette rolled her eyes.

______________________________

 

“Are you asleep?” Marinette whispered.

“No,” Chat Noir whispered back.

“Just checking.”

________________________________

 

“Okay, balcony bonding time over,” Marinette declared, sitting up. “I can’t feel my back, neck, or ankles.”

“Ankles?” Chat Noir laughed.

“Yes! I had them crossed and now my feet are asleep and stop laughing at me!”

“I’m sorry. You’re just cute.”

Marinette stood and danced around to get her blood flowing again. She eyed Chat Noir, who stood perfectly still as he watched her. “So what, you don’t get all stiff from lying down in a cramped chair with somebody on top of you for hours?”

He looked away for a moment. “Of course I do.”

Marinette seemed to realize the double meaning of her words and felt her cheeks warm. “I…um…so, thanks for hanging out with me again tonight.”

“Thanks for letting me hang out. I like being here.”

“I’m glad.” Marinette shifted from foot to foot. “It’s pretty late, huh?”

“Yeah.”

“Mmmhmm.”

Chat Noir cleared his throat. “I guess I should go then…”

“Right.” Marinette pulled at the hem of her shirt. “Or, you know, you could stay again if you wanted.”

“Uh, do you want me to stay again?”

“I mean, my parents are still gone until tomorrow evening so…but if you have things to do, I totally understand.”

“No, I mean, I just didn’t want to assume—“

“Of course not!” Marinette exclaimed loudly and then clapped a hand over her mouth. The pair looked at each other and started to laugh.

“Now that the awkwardness is out of the way,” Chat Noir grinned, “after you, Princess.”

____________________________________

 

“Hey, Mari?”

“Hmmm?”

“Would you, I mean, I understand if it makes you uncomfortable…but would you mind if I, uh, stopped being Chat Noir while we slept?”

Marinette stiffened beside him in the bed. “Y-you want to drop your transformation?”

Chat Noir frowned. “I guess, but maybe with your back to me? No pressure. If you don’t feel comfortable…”

“T-that would be okay, I think. I promise not to look.” Marinette sat up and slid a hidden panel over the skylight, plunging the room into pitch black. 

Chat Noir’s eyes glowed eerily in the darkness. “That’s handy.”

“For you maybe,” Marinette laughed. “The only thing I can see are green kitty eyes.”

“Turn around?”

Marinette nodded mostly to herself and flipped over. She heard Chat Noir take a deep breath. “Plagg, claws in.”

The reflection of green light splashed against the walls. “You know what you’re doing, Kid?” a voice asked.

“It’ll be fine. There’s cheese in my bag.” There was a rustling of fabric and Marinette felt Chat Noir tentatively tap on her shoulder.

“Hi,” she said, staring at the wall.

“Hi.” His voice was different somehow. Softer maybe. “Is-is this okay?”

“It shouldn’t be any different than last night,” Marinette replied hesitantly.

“But it is.”

“Yeah.”

“I can change back if you want—“

“No! No. If you’re comfortable with this, then I can be too.”

“You want to try that again, but a little more convincing?” he chuckled.

Marinette giggled. “Sorry, kitty. Everything feels, I don’t know, more real and less real at the same time. Does that make sense?”

“That’s the perfect way to describe it, I think.” 

Marinette felt him shift closer to her. 

“Is it okay if I, uh…”

“Do you want me to scoot back or…”

They both laughed for a second. “This shouldn’t be so…weird,” Marinette complained.

Chat Noir took the plunge and nestled up beside her, draping an arm over her waist. Marinette put a hand on his forearm and inhaled sharply.

“What? Did I do something wrong?” he asked, panicked.

“No, sorry,” she breathed, “I just wasn’t expecting skin. It surprised me, that’s all.”

“Oh.”

“It’s fine. We should go to sleep. It’s late.” She turned her head slightly, blind in the darkness of the room. “Do we need to set an alarm or anything?”

“No. I’ve got it covered.”

“Goodnight, Chat.”

“Goodnight, Princess.”


	3. Chapter 3

Thunder rattled the walls and windows and an immediate streak of lightning lit up the room. Marinette gasped awake, confused and incoherent. Her brain couldn’t make sense of what was happening. Thunder shook the room again and rain beat down on the ceiling right above her.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” Chat Noir soothed her, tightening his arm around her. “Shhh, it’s just a storm.”

Marinette’s teeth chattered in fear. This was ridiculous. She wasn’t scared of storms. Something about being woken up in this fashion though…she must have been sleeping deep. She couldn’t seem to clear the fog from her brain. Something heavy banged against the ceiling and Marinette jumped.

“I-I d-don’t know w-what’s wrong with me,” she stammered. “S-storms don’t usually b-bother me.”

“It’s okay. Just breathe,” Chat Noir instructed in her ear. 

Marinette wanted to turn over and bury her face in his chest, to hide from the stupid storm that shouldn’t have her so rattled. She started to move her body and stopped, inhaling sharply. She suddenly remembered that Chat Noir wasn’t Chat Noir right now. She stiffened in his embrace.

“What’s wrong?”

“I was about to turn over but…”

“Just turn over.”

“What if I see?” she asked quietly.

“I don’t care about that right now.”

Marinette squeezed her eyes shut and turned in his arms. She folded her arms against his chest and pressed her face into his neck. Chat Noir spelled nice, like expensive cologne. It almost didn’t seem like the right scent for him but then it did at the same time. She could feel her breath rebound off his skin. Her lips were so very close. She could feel his pulse hammering in her ear.

“Better?”

Marinette just nodded against him. “This is so stupid,” she finally mumbled.

Chat Noir chuckled. “Storms can be scary.”

“Not usually to me. I think I’m finally waking up but now I’m just embarrassed.”

“You don’t need to be embarrassed with me.”

They lay in silence for a while as the rain beat hard against the walls outside. Occasional flashes of lightening filled the room followed by the distant echo of thunder. 

“Chat?”

“Hmmm?”

“Tell me about you. The you that isn’t Chat Noir.”

“What do you want to know?”

“What do you enjoy doing when you aren’t saving Paris from akumas and silly girls from thunderstorms?” Marinette asked.

She could feel him smile even though she couldn’t see it. “Let’s see. I enjoy video games, but you knew that.”

“Did you mean to say you enjoy losing video games?” she teased.

“Hateful. Uh, I like when I get to spend time with friends but it doesn’t happen as often as I wish it would.”

“Why is that?”

“Work.”

“Being Chat Noir or…”

“I have another job, uh, family business type of thing, I guess,” he sighed. “Between that, being Chat Noir, and extracurriculars, I don’t get a lot of free time.”

“And what does the Not-Chat Noir do for extracurricular activities?”

“Why the sudden interest?”

Marinette moved to look at him but Chat Noir kept his arms tight around her. “Oh, right,” she said sheepishly. “Reflex.”

“It’s fine. I just…I think I feeling a little self-conscious right now.”

“Sorry,” she apologized. “I guess I was just thinking about what you said earlier, about not knowing who you are. I feel more comfortable with you than just about anyone else. I feel like it should be weird. In fact, I’m pretty sure it should be weird, but it’s just not…right?”

Chat Noir swallowed thickly. “Uh, right.”

“I mean, you kiss my hand a-and my forehead and we’re literally in bed t-together,” she stammered, “and I think I maybe do understand the feelings on my part but maybe I’m wondering about you…”

“What about me?” he asked and his voice wasn’t quite as steady as before.

“Why do you keep coming back here?” Marinette asked quietly. “Not that I mind! I love having you here, but I suppose I just want to know why.”

“Why do you love having me here?”

“I asked you first!” she huffed.

Chat Noir shifted uneasily beside her. Marinette dug her fingers into the soft cotton of his t-shirt.

“Okay, um, first, I need you to promise not to get upset.”

“That’s ominous.”

Chat Noir laughed but it was forced. “Right…so…we, uh, we know each other at school.”

“W-we do?”

“Yeah. And we’re kind of friends, I think? But I wanted to get to know you better and, uh, I guess this seemed easier…as Chat Noir.”

“We see each other every day?”

“Most of the time, yeah,” Chat Noir confirmed.

“Are you in my class?”

Chat Noir didn’t reply.

“Wow. This is…wow.”

“Good wow or bad wow?”

“Uh, surprised wow?”

“Do you want me to leave?” Chat Noir’s voice was low and soft.

Marinette tightened her grasp on his shirt. “No. You’re still you. You’re still the same…I just need a minute to process. I guess I never realized we were so close to each other all the time.”

“Yeah.”

“Hey, Chat, uh, do you think Ladybug goes to our school too?”

“I think she might,” he confessed. “There have been a few clues that make me think that.”

“Like what?”

“Well, she’s always there as soon as something happens, isn’t she? Like, every time. So many of our classmates have been akumatized though, so maybe she’s in a different level?”

“So you are in my class,” Marinette confirmed.

“Oops.”

Marinette giggled. “Are you going on the assumption that she is somebody that hasn’t been akumatized?”

“I guess so. I’m honestly not sure how that works. I think we’re kind of safe from it, maybe?” Chat Noir shifted restlessly. “Taking that into account, our class isn’t very big.”

“No, it isn’t.”

“One could possibly whittle down anyone who has been akumatized and come pretty close.”

Marinette took a shallow breath. “That’s one theory. H-have you done that?”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“When she wants me to know who she is, she’ll tell me. I wouldn’t want to betray her trust. She kind of takes the secret identity thing pretty serious.”

“How do you think she would feel knowing you aren’t transformed and with a civilian right now?”

Chat Noir shifted again. “I don’t know. She would probably think I’m being reckless.”

“Are you?”

“I trust you, Marinette. I…if it wasn’t for Ladybug, I would…” he trailed off.

“What?” she whispered.

“It’s not fair to say.”

“Just out with it, kitty.”

“If it wasn’t for Ladybug, I would want to…to be with you,” he finished softly.

“Oh,” Marinette breathed. 

“Please don’t be weirded out. Did I make it weird? I feel like I made it weird. I’m so sorry.” He rubbed his cheek against the top of her head. “You’re just so great. We have fun and you’re sweet and silly and you let me just be me.”

“I’m not weirded out, promise,” she assured him. “If I’m honest, I feel the same way. If it weren’t for, uh, Adrien…” She trailed off and let out a bitter laugh. “That’s stupid. At least you and Ladybug actually have a relationship. I can’t even function around Adrien. I’m an idiot.”

“You really like him that much?”

Marinette sighed. “I’m a little hopeless if you haven’t caught on yet.”

“I guess I don’t get it.”

“Adrien’s…he’s kind and brave. He stands up for people. He’s really sweet too.”

“Ah, yes, with the sweetness again,” Chat Noir interjected.

“Sweetness goes a long way, thanks,” Marinette sniffed. “I mean it. He’s a good guy.”

“Why is it so hard to talk to him then?”

“I’m me, you know? Hasn’t there ever been anyone you just felt was so great, so wonderful that it was a little intimidating to be around them?”

“He’s not that great,” Chat Noir scoffed.

“Don’t be jealous.”

“Believe me, I’m not.”

“Why are you getting so huffy?!”

“I just think your whole outlook on him is wrong. And what do you mean by intimidated by him? You’re amazing. He should be begging you to go out with him. Stupid coward.”

Marinette pushed against his chest. “Shut up. Just stop.”

“No,” he replied petulantly. “Adrien’s not worth your time. He’s beneath you.”

“You need to go.”

“What?”

“I said you need to go. Now.” She pulled herself from his grasp and flipped over angrily.

Chat Noir stayed silent for a few moments before sighing. “Plagg, claws out.” Bright light washed the room in green. Marinette huddled in closer to her wall angrily. She felt the bed shift under Chat as he crawled to the end and stood to open the skylight.

Thunder shook the room again and Marinette turned back over. “Chat, wait.” But he was already gone.

___________________________

 

Chat Noir sat huddled on the lounger as far beneath the overhang as he could get. Rain still fell on him but it wasn’t the total onslaught as when he had first come out. He should just go. He should run home right now. 

He thought about his big room filled with things. Cold, lifeless things. He had actually wrangled permission to stay out tonight. His father was out of town and Adrien had been able to wear Nathalie down into saying he could stay with Nino. He had hoped Marinette would want him to stay again. He could always go to Nino’s if she hadn’t. Nino wouldn’t have minded.

But Marinette had wanted him to stay. If he could have just kept his big mouth shut, he would still be holding her inside, warm and dry. He was having trouble merging the girl he laughed away nights with and the classmate who couldn’t talk around him. He couldn’t fathom what she saw in his civilian self. He was boring, spineless, useless. Couldn’t she see she already knew the real him? Why had she been so angry?

_____________________________

 

“Marinette, are you asleep?” Tikki asked quietly.

“No,” she answered pitifully. “I feel too guilty to sleep.”

“For kicking Chat out?”

Marinette just nodded into her pillow. 

“Well, he’s still on the balcony. You could always invite him back in.”

“What?!” Marinette sat up and crawled to the edge of the bed. The platform was still wet from Chat Noir slipping out before. She peeked out the skylight. She couldn’t see anything in the darkness. “Are you sure?” she whispered.

“I can feel him out there,” Tikki replied.

Marinette eased the skylight open just a bit. Cold droplets hit her face and hands. “Chat?”

“Yeah?” the darkness answered.

“Please come back in.”

____________________________________

 

Marinette worked the towel over his hair. Chat Noir leaned into her ministrations, a soft rumble coming from his chest. The towel stilled. “Are you purring?”

The rumble immediately stopped. “No.”

“Hmmmm.” Marinette began to rub the towel against his hair again. “I’m sorry.”

“Me too.”

“I don’t really know what else to say.” Marinette moved the towel down to his shoulders and chest, wiping the rain from the synthetic material of his suit.

“You don’t have to say anything else. We’re both sorry. We can just leave it at that.”

“I kicked you out in the middle of a storm.”

“Yeah, that wasn’t awesome.”

Marinette sighed and handed him the towel to finish drying himself. “Why’d you stay?”

“This is where I wanted to be, I guess.”

“Are you hungry?”

“I could eat.”

___________________________

 

“Cold baked pizza is different than cold delivery pizza,” Chat Noir decided after his second slice. “I’m not sure which one I like better.”

“I’m partial to baked, I think.” Marinette bit off a chunk of crust. “It’s less greasy. Cold grease doesn’t really do it for me.”

“I think I’ve eaten more pizza in the last two days than I have in my entire life.”

“That’s actually a little sad.” Marinette bumped her shoulder against his and he smiled at her.

“The sun’s coming up.”

“Ugh, we didn’t really sleep much, huh?”

Chat Noir laughed. “No, not much. Tired?”

Marinette yawned. 

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

“Do you have to go?”

Chat Noir studied her face. “I feel like I should say yes but I want to say no.”

“I don’t know how to respond to that,” she admitted.

“Can I ask you something?”

“You just did.”

Chat Noir shook his head. “Seriously.”

“Okay.”

“If it weren’t for Adrien, uh, would you…I mean to say, could I…” He frowned. “I think I want to kiss you,” he finally muttered.

“O-oh, um…”

Chat Noir squeezed his eyes shut. “Forget I said that! Please, just forget.”

Marinette bit her lip. “Do you want to watch a movie or something?”

Chat Noir looked at her gratefully. “I would really like that.”


	4. Chapter 4

“Kid, you’ve got to stop pacing. You’re going to wear a track in the carpet.”

Adrien spun when he reached the half-pipe and started back the other way. 

“You can’t go back tonight. You’ll see her tomorrow at school.”

“It’s not the same.”

Plagg rolled his eyes. “You literally saw her not three hours ago. Even if you go over there, what’s your excuse going to be? ‘Hi, I’m pathetic. Can I come inside?’ It’s not going to work.”

Adrien glared at the kwami. “I don’t need an excuse. We’re friends.”

Plagg zipped in front of his face, halting Adrien’s movement. “Listen, Kid, I heard the things you were saying about yourself during your little sleepover. You’re playing a dangerous game.”

“She’s not going to find out.”

“Oh, sure, that makes sense, especially since you dropped your transformation to snuggle with her.”

Adrien groaned and flopped down onto the couch. “I don’t know what I’m doing, Plagg. I’m in love with Ladybug.”

“Well, apparently you’re in love with Marinette.”

“I can’t be in love with two girls,” he mumbled into the couch cushion.

Plagg thought it better to not respond. 

“Besides, she likes Adrien,” Adrien added.

“You’re Adrien, you cracked walnut!”

________________________________

 

“I feel like I should tell him who I am. It got weird, right?” Marinette paced her small room.

“Things were definitely a little more charged than usual,” Tikki agreed.

“He said if it wasn’t for Ladybug, he would want to be with me. He wants to be with me, all of me.”

“I know.”

“I’m scared.”

“Marinette, you don’t have to do anything if you aren’t ready, but perhaps it would be best to limit your time with Chat if you aren’t going to come clean.”

Marinette dropped down to her chaise. “I don’t want to limit my time with Chat,” she muttered.

“Then you should probably tell him.”

“But what about Adrien?” she wailed.

Tikki huffed. “Chat told you that he has feelings for both you and Ladybug. It isn’t fair to lead him on.”

“Do you think he’s going to come over tonight?”

“Marinette!”

____________________________________

 

“Today we will be breaking up into pairs for the start of our new poetry project. Each team will…”

“Girl, maybe this is finally your chance to be on a project with you know who,” Alya whispered, cocking an eyebrow.

“Knowing my luck, I’ll get stuck with Chloe,” Marinette responded with a frown. She looked down at the back of Adrien’s head, willing him to turn around. He didn’t.

“Alya and Max, Nino and Rose, Chloe and Kim, Adrien and Marinette…”

Alya grabbed Marinette’s arm and quietly squealed. Marinette felt her cheeks warm.

“Looks like you and I are partners, Marinette,” Adrien smiled, turning to her.

“I…yeah! Partners we are…on the thing.” Marinette squeezed her eyes shut.

“She’s a little excited,” Alya explained as Marinette sunk lower in her seat.

“Good, me too,” Adrien winked as Marinette puddled even further down.

__________________________________

 

“Hey! Marinette, wait up.” 

Marinette spun to see Adrien jogging down the steps. 

“Man, you really got out of there quick.”

“Sorry, uh, I guess I’m hungry?” She gestured lamely to the bakery across the street.

“Oh, would you mind if I tagged along? We could get started on our project.”

“Y-you want to c-come to my house for lunch?” she stammered.

“Only if I won’t be a problem.”

“You, a problem? Never! You’re perfect. I mean, you’re lunch. Perfect with you is lunch!”

“O…kay.” He eyed her speculatively. “If you’re sure?”

Marinette nodded helplessly and spun to walk in the direction of the bakery.

_____________________________

 

“Adrien, what a nice surprise! Look, Tom, it’s Adrien,” Sabine beamed.

“I can see that, sweetheart.” Tom shot his daughter an apologetic smile. “What are you two up to today?”

“Marinette and I got paired up for a literary project. We thought we would get started on some research.” 

“They’re a pair, Tom.” Sabine clasped her hands together.

“Yes, I heard, sweetheart.” 

Sabine herded them to the back of the bakery and up the steps to the living room. “You two get comfortable and I’ll bring up some lunch.”

“Sorry about my parents,” Marinette sighed once they were alone. “They get a little excited.”

“I like your parents. They’re nice.”

“Let me run up and grab my laptop and we can get started.” Marinette began to climb the stairs to her room.

“Do you want me to come up with you?” Adrien followed her and stood on the bottom stair.

“No!” she shrieked, clapping a hand over her mouth. The last thing she wanted her crush to see was the unhealthy amount of wall space she had devoted to his face. “I mean, it’s fine. I’ll just be a minute. Make yourself comfortable.”

Adrien walked back to the kitchen counter. The pizza box from their lunch the day before still sat on top of the trashcan. Suddenly he felt a little sick. What was he doing here? This was only going to make things harder to explain later. The thought surprised him. Later…had he really decided he was going to tell Marinette about Chat Noir?

“Kid, what are we doing here?” Plagg asked, echoing his thoughts. “This can only end badly.”

“It will be fine,” Adrien hissed. “Marinette and I have to work on this project no matter what so being in her house isn’t going to make a difference.”

“Yeah, whatever you say, Chat.” Plagg rolled his eyes and disappeared back into Adrien’s bag. “Just make sure to slip me something decent to eat.”

The apartment door opened and Adrien jumped.

“I wasn’t sure what all you liked so I just brought a little of everything,” Sabine explained, entering with a large tray laden with croissant sandwiches, quiches, and pastries.

“Oh, uh, wow, Mrs. Cheng, this all looks amazing.”

“I’m glad you think so. Maybe you can convince Marinette to eat some of it. I swear that girl only lived on pizza while we were gone.” Sabine shook her head. “I’ll leave you to it.”

Marinette came back down after Sabine left. “Way to go overboard, Maman,” she laughed when she saw the veritable feast.

“Yeah, I don’t think we can eat all this,” Adrien confessed.

Marinette waved him off. “It’s fine. I’ll just save the rest for a friend.”

“A friend?”

Twin spots of pink glowed on Marinette’s cheeks. “Uh, yeah, sometimes a friend of mine comes over at night and he’s almost always hungry so…”

“Oh, so…like a boyfriend?” Adrien asked oh-so-innocently.

“No! I mean…well…yes…no! Not really?” Marinette squeezed her eyes shut in embarrassment. “Can you keep a secret?” She opened one eye to look at him.

“Yes,” he answered too quickly.

“I’m, uh…I’m friends with Chat Noir. He hangs out over here sometimes.”

“Wow, that’s…that’s really cool, Marinette. Is he awesome? I’ve heard he’s awesome.”

Marinette laughed. “He definitely thinks so.”

Adrien frowned.

“He’s awesome,” she assured him. 

_______________________________________

 

“Wasn’t Adrien just perfect today?” Marinette sighed, looking at one of the many pictures on her wall.

“He was something all right,” Tikki muttered. “I don’t know what game he’s trying to play…”

“What was that?”

“Nothing,” Tikki sighed. “But Marinette—“

A heavy thump above cut Tikki off. The kwami rolled her eyes up towards the ceiling. “Sounds like we have company.”

“Tikki, hide!”

Chat Noir tapped on the glass and Marinette opened the skylight with a smile. “Are you lost, kitty cat?”

Chat Noir threw a hand to his heart. “Ouch. I miss one night in your presence and you’ve already forgotten me?”

Marinette giggled. “Stay there. I’ll bring up some snacks.” She disappeared back into her room.

___________________________________

 

“This is quite the spread, Princess.” Chat Noir licked some stray chocolate from his clawed fingers.

“Yeah, my mom may have gone a little overboard.”

“Surely she didn’t make all this for little old me.” Chat Noir blinked thick eyelashes.

Marinette’s blushed. “Uh, no, not exactly…Adrien came over for lunch today.”

“Ah, that would explain it,” he replied dryly, reaching for a flaky croissant.

“It’s not like that,” Marinette explained. “We’re working on a project together. He doesn’t just…come over for no reason.” She gave Chat Noir a teasing look.

“Are you trying to imply something?” he grinned at her.

“Absolutely not, my dear Chat.”

“I’ll have you know I most definitely have a reason for coming over here.”

“And what would that be?”

“I wanted to see you,” he answered honestly.

“Oh,” Marinette breathed and then smiled at him. “I can’t think of any better reason than that actually.”

__________________________________

 

“That’s not the right answer.”

“Of course it’s not,” Marinette grumbled. “Stupid math.”

“Do you want to go over the equation again?” Chat Noir asked, trying to hide him grin.

“I think I’m too tired to care. I can work on it tomorrow anyway.” Marinette leaned back against Chat Noir’s chest as they sprawled out on the lounger. She let her tablet slide to the ground.

“That’s a good way to get a cracked screen.”

“Believe me, if the screen hasn’t cracked with everything else it’s been put through, that drop was child’s play.”

Chat Noir chuckled and Marinette felt it reverberate up her spine. “You are slightly clumsy.”

“A bit.” Marinette chewed on her lip. “Hey, Chat?”

“Hmmm?”

“Can we talk about yesterday, I mean, about what you said?”

Marinette felt him inhale deeply. “What did I say?”

“The thing about me…and…and, um, Ladybug.”

Chat Noir didn’t respond but Marinette felt him shift uneasily underneath her.

“We don’t have to! I understand if you regret saying it or if you didn’t really mean it or—“

“I meant it,” he said quietly.

“So, uh, I guess I was just wondering—“

A loud explosion rocked the balcony and the couple scrambled to their feet. Chat Noir ran to the railing and looked down. He turned and bowed. “Duty calls, Princess. Get inside.”

“Be careful.”

“Always,” he winked and jumped over the railing.

Tikki zipped through the skylight. “Time to go to work, Marinette. Your talk with Chat is just going to have to wait.”

“What else is new?” Marinette sighed. “Tikki, spots on!”


	5. Chapter 5

“Always a pleasure, My Lady,” Chat Noir bumped his knuckles against Ladybug’s. “More for seeing you and less for having to deal with an akuma who believed the latest fashion trend should be hot pants and halter tops.” He shuddered. “There are just some things you can’t unsee.”

“Mayor Bourgeois bare backed is one of them,” Ladybug agreed with a laugh.

Chat Noir looked in the direction of the Dupain-Cheng bakery wistfully.

“Got somewhere to be, Chaton?”

“Probably not this late,” he sighed. “I was visiting a friend, but I’m sure she’s in bed by now.”

“Is this a special friend?” Ladybug teased.

Chat Noir folded down to the rooftop and leaned back against a chimney. “Can we talk?”

“Sure.” Ladybug dropped down beside him, nudging his shoulder with hers to make more room for herself against the chimney. “What’s new, pussycat?”

He gave her a small smile. “My, uh, special friend, as you put it, is really important to me. I’m thinking of telling her who I am.” He looked sideways at her. “I guess I was wondering how you felt about that.”

Ladybug bit her lip. 

“I realize it might not seem like the best idea, but I know I can trust Marinette.”

Ladybug cleared her throat. “You feel that strongly about her?” 

“I’m not sure how it happened honestly. We know each other from school, and I’ve saved her from a couple of akumas. She has this amazing balcony above her room and one night after patrol I saw her hanging out up there so I stopped by to say hello. It snowballed from there, I guess.”

“I trust your judgment, Chat. If you think you can tell her and trust her, you should.”

“I was afraid this was going to be awkward to talk to you about.”

“Why?”

Chat Noir cleared his throat. “Well, I…you know…I’ve always had feelings for you and…”

Ladybug reached over and clasped his hand in hers. “You can always talk to me about anything, okay?”

“Right, yeah,” he nodded.

“And I think this will be good for you, having Marinette. I know it would definitely be good for her.”

“You really think so?”

“I do.” Ladybug released his hand and stood up, wiping imaginary dust from her suit. “But now it’s late and this bug needs to get to bed.” She reached a hand out to help him up.

“I think I might stay out just a bit longer. I’m not quite ready to go home yet.”

“Don’t stay out too late, Chaton. We’ve got school tomorrow,” she winked.

Chat Noir watched her swing away, wondering if he was really ready.

_________________________________

 

“He’s going to tell me Tikki,” Marinette squealed. “I can’t believe I kept my cool out there. I almost dropped my transformation just to get it over with.”

“So, wait, now were are totally on board the Chat train?” Tikki asked.

Marinette sighed, flopping down on her chaise. “Look, I like Adrien. I may always like Adrien, but I don’t know, Chat is real and funny and…”

“Attainable?” Tikki offered.

“That doesn’t sound very good. No,” she decided, “that’s not what I meant.”

“I just want to make sure you aren’t looking at him as a consolation prize.” Tikki nibbled on her cookie thoughtfully. “You have a good friendship and partnership, I don’t want to see that compromised.”

“I really like him, Tikki,” Marinette assured her with a dopey grin. “And I really want to kiss his silly face.”

“Then I’m very happy for you, Marinette,” Tikki giggled. “So are you going to wait for him to come to you or—“ Tikki was cut off by a heavy thump from above for the second time that night. “I guess that answers my question.”

Marinette beamed at her and quickly climbed up the ladder. She found herself looking into green cat eyes as soon as she opened the skylight. “Hi,” she said softly.

“Hi. I didn’t wake you, did I?”

“No, I was actually kind of hoping you would come back.” Marinette blushed. “Want to come inside?”

Chat Noir nodded and slipped down beside her. He sat on the edge of her bed hesitantly. “I would like to talk if that’s okay.”

“Of course.”

“About us.”

“Okay,” she smiled at him.

Chat Noir took a deep breath. “If you’re fine with it, I’m going to show you who I am.” He looked at her for confirmation and she nodded quickly. “To be honest, I’m really nervous about it and semi-feel like I’m going to vomit, just so you know.”

Marinette reached out and cupped his cheek. “Can we talk a little bit longer then?”

Chat Noir’s eyes widened. “Uh, yeah, sure.”

“Good because I have some things to tell you too.” She ran her thumb across his cheek and he tilted into it, closing his eyes. “Chat, I really like you.”

He looked at her, head still cradled against her hand. “I like you too,” he replied softly.

“I really want to explore whatever this is with us.”

“I really want that too,” he sighed happily.

“So I need to be completely honest with you and it may be a little shocking.”

Chat Noir furrowed his brow but didn’t respond. Marinette cupped his other cheek, framing his face with her hands. “Tikki, spots on!”

Marinette’s transformation ran down her body in a flash of pink light. She still held Chat Noir’s face in her now gloved hands. He blinked once. And then twice.

“HOLY SH—“

Ladybug clapped both hands over his mouth, knocking him backwards to the bed.

“Mari, is everything okay up there?” Tom asked from the bottom of the stairs.

“Tikki, spots off!” Marinette hissed, quickly throwing a blanket over Chat Noir’s prone form. Tikki flew out of her earring and landed on top of Chat Noir’s chest.

“Hi,” she smiled at him. He only stared back at her, mouth agape.

“Mari?” Marinette could hear her father coming up the stairs.

“I’m fine, Papa! Sorry! I started a video and didn’t realize my volume was so loud,” Marinette yelled from her bed, heart pounding. She heard the footsteps falter.

“Okay, be a little more careful with that. Don’t want to blow out a speaker.”

“Thanks, Papa!” she called, breathing a sigh of relief when she heard him go back down the stairs. 

Marinette slowly turned to look down at Chat Noir. He rolled his eyes up from Tikki to look at her.

“You’re Ladybug,” he said slowly. 

Marinette nodded. 

“You’ve been Ladybug this whole time?”

Marinette nodded again, biting her lip. “I-is that okay?”

“Is that okay?!” Chat Noir sat up, dislodging Tikki.

“Shhhhh,” Marinette warned, glancing back at the trap door. 

“Sorry,” he said sheepishly. “I just…Marinette, this is…this is…” He looked down, shaking his head.

“Are you mad?”

“Mad?” he blinked. “I’m…I’m so freaking happy I can’t think straight.” He reached a hand out, pulling her to him and then he paused. “I really want to kiss you. Can—“

Marinette surged forward, pressing her lips to his. Chat Noir twisted so he could hold her in his arms. He pulled away from her for a moment. “This is,” he kissed her again, “like the absolute,” and again, “best day of,” and one more time, “my entire life.” He rested his forehead against hers as they both caught their breath.

Marinette laughed lightly. “I know the feeling.” She kissed the tip of his nose right below his mask. “Are you, uh…”

Chat Noir sat back. “Oh, ah, yeah, I guess I should…” He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. “Plagg, claws in.”

“Adrien freaking Agreste, are you kidding me right now?!” Marinette smacked his shoulder.

“Ow,” he whined, ducking his head. “Shhh, I don’t want your parents to—oomph!”

Marinette tackled him to the mattress and kissed him breathless all over again. They parted and she smacked his shoulder once more. He winced. “You deserve that and you know it.”

“Yeah…”

“I feel like I should be beyond embarrassed right now because you’re you but I’m not because you’re you,” she grinned happily at him. “This is so…so…”

“Amazing?”

“I was going to say miraculous but I suppose amazing works too,” she winked.

“So I know you asked me, but are you mad?” Adrien looked down as he asked, studying the rumpled blanket under him.

“Yes.”

His head shot up, eyes wide and panicked. 

“Of course I’m mad! You talked so bad about yourself.”

“I didn’t say anything that wasn’t true,” he muttered, running a finger over a hump in the blanket.

Marinette narrowed her eyes. “Obviously I choose to disagree.”

Adrien pursed his lips but stayed quiet.

“Ugh, you let me go on and on about my crush on you, you egotistical cat!”

Adrien’s cheeks turned pink. “Yeah, I may have liked that part a little bit.”

“And you’ve seen my ridiculous amount of pictures so you know I’m crazy.”

“I like that you’re crazy about me.”

“And you’re okay with Marinette and Ladybug being the same person?” she asked nervously.

“I honestly can’t think of anything better,” he admitted, leaning in to kiss her cheek. 

Marinette turned and captured his lips with hers. “Can you stay?”

“I may as well move in at this point,” he chuckled against her lips.

__________________________________

 

“Good morning, Marinette,” Adrien beamed from the other side of the counter. “Would you be willing to let me escort you to school today?”

Marinette rounded the display case, hand outstretched. “That would be absolutely lovely, Adrien. Thank you.” Adrien intertwined his fingers with hers as soon as he could reach her.

“Wait!” Sabine called in a rush. She thrust a bulging bag into Marinette’s free hand. “You two have a little time before school. You should eat a nice breakfast together.”

“Thanks, Maman,” Marinette beamed. “That sounds like an excellent idea.”

“Thanks, Mrs. Cheng,” Adrien blushed. The pair walked hand-in-hand out the bakery door.

“Tom, my OTP,” Sabine sighed.

“That’s our real life daughter, sweetheart; you know that, right?” the baker asked, eyebrow cocked.

“That ship’s got sails.”

“Right. Whatever you say, darling.” Tom kissed his wife’s head and glanced out the window at the young couple laughing on a park bench. “I guess I kind of see what you mean.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's a oh-so-fluffy wrap, dear friends. Thanks for reading! <3

**Author's Note:**

> Check out my tumblr: seasonofthegeek for story drabbles and character sketches :)


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